Prelude to a Conception
by LonePine
Summary: Ever wondered how Marty McFly came to be thought of?


A/N: Happy late Valentine's Day, my fellow BTTF fan fiction-reading peeps! I planned to write and upload this short story solely for fun, just for the occasion, but my imagination took me elsewhere and so I have to upload it a day late. But please give feedback! I love and appreciate reading every single review I get.

* * *

_Saturday, September 16, 1967_

_Lone Pine Timeline_

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear Linda, happy birthday to you!" the contented family sang softly as they surrounded the now one-year old girl. They were all sitting around the dining room table, where the small sponge cake covered with light frosting and strawberries on the top was centered on the middle of the table.

The birthday girl was wearing a frilly pink dress and was cooing and moving her arms and legs happily. Lorraine and George chuckled softly as Lorraine gave her an affectionate kiss to the cheek. Dave, the boisterous and hungry four-year old licked his lips at the sight of the cake then glanced at his parents.

"Linda can't blow out the candle! Can I do it?" he asked impatiently.

George rumpled his hair. "Go ahead, son."

Dave, with a determined grin, faced the cake and blew out the candle with the greatest amount of force he had.

"Oh my!" Sylvia, George's mother, exclaimed in surprise as the candle flew by her and onto the floor. She picked it back up and placed it gently on the table.

"Somebody seems a little excited." Stella, Lorraine's mother, said to Dave with a sly smile.

"I am, Grammy Stella!" Dave replied eagerly as he jumped up and down. "I want cake! Cut the cake!"

"I think you better not give him too much cake." Stella whispered to Lorraine. Lorraine nodded as she sliced the cake into equal slices and handed a smaller piece to Dave.

"Yummy!" Dave looked happily down at his plate and quickly ran to the couch and sat down.

Sam, Lorraine's father, took one small bite of his cake then immediately took a sip of his water. "Doctor says I shouldn't eat too much sweets. Bad for the health."

"You always did know how to stay healthy, Dad." Lorraine said to him as she took a bite.

"I'm not very fond of sweets, either. I prefer saltier foods." Arthur, George's father, commented and Sam nodded to him in agreement.

George finished chewing his piece as he looked down towards Linda, who was sitting on his lap trying to reach for his fork. She was softly whining as she did so.

Dave walked back over to the table with an empty plate and held it out to Lorraine. She understood and as she sliced another piece yet smaller than his first, looked sympathetically at Linda. "Aw, I think she wants some cake."

George glanced up as Lorraine walked over to them and smoothed out Linda's hair. "I'm sorry, sweetie, but you can't have any yet."

Linda seemed to understand this as she stopped reaching for the fork, her lips started to quiver and she started kicking her legs frustratedly.

"Oh no..." George frowned as he started to console her. Lorraine immediately went into the kitchen and grabbed a warm bottle of milk before Linda could start breaking out into a fit. When George held the bottle to her lips, she stopped fussing and slowly began to drink from it. Lorraine sighed in relief as she sat back down beside them.

"Hard being a parent sometimes, huh?" Sylvia said to Lorraine with a smile. "But it's all very much worth it."

Lorraine smiled. "Oh, don't I know it. I'm thankful for it all, no matter how tiring it can be. David and Linda have brought so much joy into our lives."

Stella nodded. "I always knew Lorraine would be a good mother, even back when she was still a teenager. She was so good with children, very agreeable with her brothers and sisters and extremely helpful around the house."

Sylvia smiled softly and glanced at George. "Well, I'm thankful my son made the right choice."

George chuckled and looked directly into Lorraine's eyes. "Well, she's the only one I would choose."

"Oh, you..." Lorraine mumbled but leaned over to kiss him on the cheek as Stella and Sylvia laughed.

"Mama," Dave suddenly appeared beside her holding out his empty plate. "More."

Lorraine turned her whole body to face him, and placed both her hands on his shoulders gently. "No more cake, David. You've had too many sweets today."

Dave glanced behind her and frowned. "But the cake is still there. I want more!"

"What other sweets did he eat today?" Arthur asked Lorraine curiously.

"He had Cocoa Krispies for breakfast, and two cookies and a glass of milk for a snack." she replied, to which Dave repeatedly shook her arm to get her attention.

"Please? Please?" he begged. Lorraine turned her attention back to him and shook her head firmly. "No, David. I'm sorry."

He pouted as Lorraine took his plate from him and brought it into the kitchen. George gestured for him to sit on the chair next to him. As he climbed onto the seat, he frowned and kept staring at the cake.

"I'm sorry, kiddo. But too much is too much." George said to him. Dave looked at him, then at his sister, who had just finished drinking the whole bottle of milk and was beginning to drift to sleep.

"Are you going to give it all to Linda?" he asked.

George shook his head. "Oh, no. She is much too young to have cake."

Dave's eyes suddenly widened in shock. "Daddy, you're never too young to have cake!"

At this, Sam chuckled. "Words of wisdom coming from a four-year old."

Lorraine returned, as Dave continued. "It's her birthday, and she can't even eat her own birthday cake?"

"No, but she's very thankful she has people who are here to celebrate it with her." Lorraine offered.

"What about presents?" Dave asked curiously. "Or a birthday wish?"

"Well, we did bring along some presents. But I'm not sure if she made her birthday wish yet." Sylvia replied as she took a sip of her water.

"Hmm..." Dave rubbed his chin while thinking, like how he saw his grandfathers do sometimes. Arthur and Sam laughed.

"I know!" Dave suddenly exclaimed. "I know her birthday wish!"

"What is it?" George asked with a smile.

"If she's like me she wants more Batman and G.I. Joe toys!" Dave replied happily.

"Batman and G.I. Joe toys?" Stella laughed. "What's a sweet baby girl like her going to do with Batman and G.I. Joe toys?"

"When she grows more older we can play together!" Dave decided with a grin.

George laughed and glanced down to the sleeping baby girl in his arms. "I think she'd much rather prefer to eat cake for her next birthday."

"Easy-Bake Oven?" Dave suggested.

"Maybe." George replied simply.

Dave frowned. "I want somebody to play Batman and G.I. Joe with me!"

After being silent for a few seconds, he suddenly turned to his parents. "Can I have a brother?"

All the grandparents started laughing, as Lorraine widened her eyes in surprise. George almost spit out his cup of coffee.

"What?" Lorraine asked for confirmation. "You want a brother?"

"Yes!" Dave replied happily, then got off the chair to jump up and down. "Mama, Daddy, give me a brother! Then we can play Batman and G.I. Joe!"

Lorraine and George looked at each other, unsure of how to answer.

"Please?" Dave pleaded as he stopped jumping.

"You heard him, when are you going to give us another little bundle of joy?" Sylvia teased George and Lorraine.

George turned to face his son. "Well, it's not always easy to have another baby."

Dave's expression changed from jubilant to curious. "How do you get one?"

George's face puzzled even more.

"Sweetie," Lorraine thankfully interrupted as she also turned to face their son. "Let's just say we can't make any promises that we'll have another baby."

Dave pouted and crossed his arms, and the grandparents laughed once more.

* * *

As the afternoon of more chatting and relaxing dwindled down, the grandparents were finally getting ready to leave.

"Bye, little Linda! Hope you had a great birthday, deary." Stella kissed the smiling baby girl good-bye, and turned one last time to wink at George and Lorraine. "Till' next time. And remember, if you need us any time to babysit, we're always here for you."

Sam Baines was next. "Try not to grow any more quickly until the next time we visit." he joked as he touched Linda's head affectionately and then nodded to George and Lorraine as he followed his wife out the door.

Arthur and Sylvia were next.

"Bye, sweetie! We love you so much!" Sylvia hugged and kissed Linda on the cheek.

"Bye Linda! Stay happy and bright!" Arthur said, mirroring his wife and hugging the little girl. Then he turned to George and Lorraine and suddenly held out an envelope.

"What's this?" George asked, taking the envelope in confusion.

Arthur smiled. "It's for Dave's birthday."

"What? But his birthday's not until two months from now." Lorraine replied, as puzzled as her husband was. Linda, who she was holding in one arm, started reaching for the envelope in curiosity.

"Well, then think of it as an early birthday present from us; from all of us." Sylvia replied. "While you two were away from the table for a bit, we spoke with Sam and Stella and we all decided to pitch in and help give Dave his birthday wish."

Lorraine and George exchanged confused glances.

"We received this as a gift, but it seems to us that you two are much more deserving of it." Arthur explained with a smile.

George scanned the envelope. "Is it money? A coupon?"

Sylvia smiled and touched his arm in affection.

"Use it wisely." Arthur said simply and chuckled as he glanced at George before turning to walk outside the door.

"See you later!" Sylvia waved happily at the two before following her husband.

"Thank you...!" George and Lorraine called after them nonetheless as they closed the door.

George immediately walked to the couch and Lorraine followed him in intrigue as he teared open the envelope.

To their surprise, there were two free balcony tickets for a three-to-five night cruise, along with $100.

As they stared in awe and surprise for a minute, George smirked and pulled Lorraine closer to him. She grinned as she looked up at him, and they slowly kissed.


End file.
